David Sepulveda Photo
As the mayor, police, bloggers and pundits argue about how to best maintain order and curb sporadic violence among exiting club goers on the Crown Street corridor, the city remains a vibrant and culturally blessed enterprise before and after dark. Meanwhile, on a recent evening, I ventured downtown to catch “Listen Here’s” 2010 fall season opener at The Book Trader Cafe.
“Listen Here” is sponsored by local literary journal the New Haven Review, the New Haven Theatre Collective and the Arts Council of Greater New Haven. The event series features readings of classic short stories by local actors in cafes throughout the city. New Haven Review publisher Bennett Lovett-Graff welcomed the audience to a new season and discussed upcoming events that include eleven dates taking place at Manjares Cafe in Westville, Lulu European Cafe on Cottage Street and several additional engagements at Book Trader Cafe on Chapel Street. The evening’s theme, dubbed “Hardly Boiled,” yielded two hysterically funny readings by actors Jeremy Funke (Ethan Coen’s “The Russian”) and Steve Scarpa (Woody Allen’s “The Whore of Mensa”).
My trip to Book Trader’s was part of an ambitious, if daunting weeknight agenda, that included attending a Westville screening and concert benefiting director Stephen Dest’s soon-to-be-made movie, “My Brother Jack.” Getting there was complicated by the gauntlet of cultural activities I encountered after leaving the “Hear This” readings. Even for a corner that includes Yale’s School of Architecture and Yale Art Gallery, York and Chapel Streets seemed particularly busy with the purposeful movement of people. As I traveled up York Street, enormous metal lanterns at Yale’s neo-gothic University Theater (pictured) cast a beckoning glow for theater goers headed into Yale Rep’s world premiere of “We Have Always Lived in the Castle,” (directed by Anne Kaufman). I weaved my way through a large crowd that had amassed on the theater’s steps and sidewalk, pausing to vicariously enjoy the pre-theater excitement and overall ambiance of the scene.
Further up the street at Broadway’s Au Bon Pain Cafe, a swarm of placard-waving, black and white-clad young people (pictured) were creating a commotion, but were not protesting anything; they were giving “Free Hugs” to anyone who would accept them. As part of the “Be NiceTeam” of Future Professionals, cosmetology students from Paul Mitchell’s North Haven Academy had joined in what was a National Free-Hug Day to spread good will. According to spokesperson Nina Piscatello, the Paul Mitchell team is part of a marketing and education program and includes environmental, social and educational outreach. “One of our teams will soon be working with Habitat for Humanity, helping to build a homes” she said. After a few edifying hugs, I was a few steps closer to my car and Westville’s beautifully refurbished Lyric Hall where the fund raiser had already begun.
Only steps away, I heard the unmistakable and iconic sound of Jimi Hendrix’s “Hey Joe” anthem being played live. I had to stop. In front of the J.Crew store was the “Guitar Man,” Clifford Byrd (pictured), who said he had been playing the Broadway strip for decades. A thin cardboard box sat atop a couple of plastic milk crates with dollar bills piled in one corner. Byrd was happy to talk about his musical background, citing numerous acts he has played with, including the Isley Brothers, and greater New Haven guitar legend Edward Cherry. “I bring it from the heart” noted the Vietnam veteran who yanked several I.D.‘s from his wallet to underscore his military bona fides. He exuded an ambassador’s aura, was spiffily dressed, and seemed to care more about the folks passing by than whether or not they were going to feather his makeshift “nest.” After several additional passersby paused to take in the one-man show, I excused myself and proceeded to what I hoped would be the last stop of the evening.
At Lyric Hall, event supporters had just viewed the short film “Blind” by award winning writer/director Stephen Dest (pictured, in vest). The film was screened at the Cannes film Festival in 2008 and eventually sold to a Canadian film channel. On hand to promote pre-production of “My Brother Jack” the soon-to-be-made independent, full-length feature film, was Dest (Stephendest.com) and his Producer, David MacNiven.
Headlining the Lyric Hall fundraiser (if you don’t count Lulu’s exquisite light fare) was well-known New Haven musician Jonny Rodgers (pictured). Rodger’s music can be heard on “Blind,” Dest’s 2008 film, as well as on his well-received 2008 album, “Aviary.” As Rodgers began summoning soulful notes from the rims of wine glasses filled to various depths with water, a profound sense of a unique shared experience befell the audience. “Some call the instrument a wine glass harp” he said after the performance. Teacher that he is, Rodgers explained that Ben Franklin had coined the term “armonica” for his invention that also used varying quantities of water in specially designed glasses. Through the use of a more contemporary invention, Rodger’s electronically layered loops of glass-assisted sounds combined with his subtle guitar finger picking and complementary vocal range, was nothing less than transporting. It is hoped that he will have a role in musically supporting the new film, though a contract has yet to be signed, according to Dest.
Director Dest’s forays into film are preceded by a long and illustrious career in theater as both actor and director. Presently a faculty member at Betsy Ross Performing Arts and the Neighborhood Music School, Dest takes strong pride in his New Haven roots and talked about wanting to adapt the culture of theater, specifically the team mentality where everyone has a stake and takes responsibility for the success of the project, to his film. “The film needs to be made in New Haven,” he told an attentive audience, “This is where I grew up and we feel that the visuals of this city [are] the city of Jack,” a protagonist of the screenplay he has written. “I want this experience to do for New Haven what Woody Allen did for Manhattan,” he added, invoking the name of the famous writer/actor/director for the second time in my “culture walk” that evening.
Dest said he is presently building a multi-media/film studio on Crown Street that he believes will be good for the area and good for New Haven. “My Brother Jack” will be the first film to come out of the new studio” he predicted. The project is presently accepting donations on Kickstarter, a website devoted to getting such projects off the ground. The time-sensitive fundraising mechanism requires that a minimum of $20,000 be raised by October 29 for the donations to be activated in an all-or-nothing gambit. Dest is acutely aware of the bad press the Crown Street area has received of late, and believes that projects such as his will help move the city beyond the festering negative perceptions.